Chevelle

Chevelle is a rock band from Chicago. Formed in 1994, the band consisted of three brothers: Pete Loeffler (guitar, vocals), Sam (drums), and Joe (bass). With their second album, Wonder What's Next and it's breakthrough single, "The Red", Chevelle achieved great mainstream success. If you listen to any Alternative music station regularly, you've probably heard several of their songs. The band's style features heavy, down-tuned riffs, a driving rhythm section and Pete Loeffler's versatile singing, which can jump from a serene whisper to a scream in a moment's notice. Joe left the band in 2005 for disputed reasons and was replaced by Dean Bernardini, Pete and Sam's brother-in-law.

Discography:

• Point #1 (1999)
• Wonder What's Next (2002)
• This Type of Thinking (Could Do Us In) (2004)
• Vena Sera (2007)
• Sci-Fi Crimes (2009)
• Hats Off To the Bull (2011)

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Chevelle provides examples of the following tropes:

• All of the Other Reindeer: "The Red". "They say freak/ when you're singled out".
• Alternative Metal: Though their sound is better described as 'radio-friendly rock meets heavy metal'.
• Altum Videtur: The album title Vena Sera, which literally translates to "in like vein", although Word of God gives "vein liquid" (i.e. blood) as the intended meaning.
• Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: The crimes of the people in the video for "The Fad" range from inventing e-mail spam and robbing old ladies to "wearing bikini briefs".
• Band of Relatives
• Careful with That Axe
• Disproportionate Retribution: The video to "I Get It". Did your boss refuse to let you use the "winner's" elevator and steal your sandwich? Time to have him stalked by a clown, beaten up by a UFC champion, and tattooed with the words "Mr. Perfect" on his forehead. Admittedly, humiliating his employee when the guy was giving a presentation was pretty low, but still.
• Dysfunctional Family: The subject of "Family System".
• Early Installment Weirdness: Point #1 is much more unpolished than later works, in part due to Steve Albini's production. Pete's vocals are also different and the entire album has more of a debt to Tool's sound than succeeding albums.
• Follow the Leader: Detractors often accuse them of being Tool rip-offs, due to Pete's vocals, which are reminiscent of Maynard James Keenan, and his cryptic lyrical style. Bringing this up among fans is sure Flame Bait, especially on YouTube. The very Tool-like video for "Mia" didn't help.
• A Good Name for a Rock Band: They're named after the Chevy Chevelle, a car that the brothers' dad liked.
• Indecipherable Lyrics: On the first listen, it can be nearly impossible to understand anything Pete is singing in "The Fad".
• Intercourse with You: "Pinata".
• The Invisible Band: The band members don't appear in the videos for "Mia", which features creepy claymation, and "I Get It".
• Madness Mantra: "SEEING RED AGAIN! SEEING RED AGAIN!" etc.
• Man On Fire: The video for "Point #1".
• Metal Scream: Often. Pete has an especially epic scream at the beginning of "Well Enough Alone", which can be a real shock for the unsuspecting listener.
• Misanthrope Supreme: The narrator of "Saferwaters", who despises humanity so much he would like nothing more than to de-evolve and crawl back into the primordial ocean.
• Mohs Scale of Rock and Metal Hardness: About a 6, with heavier songs like "Family System" and "The Fad" in the 7 area. Vena Sera is probably their heaviest work, while the last two albums have been about a 5, though their usual 6-7 songs still show up.
• Monster Clown: The video for "The Fad" has a gang of clowns kidnapping people and beating them up. Not enirely played straight, as the people were wrongdoers being taught a lesson and are freed afterwards. The "I Get It" video also has a clown in it.
• Mr. Fanservice: Pete and Joe, when he was in the band.
• Not Christian Rock: Caused a whole controversy due to the fact that they were briefly on a Christian label and the lyrics of a few songs like "Grab Thy Hand". The band members themselves are Christians, but Sam has said "None of us feels being a rock band on stage should be a pedestal for preaching".
• One-Woman Song: "Mia". Incidentally, someone named Mia is thanked by the band in the liner notes to their first two albums.
• Performance Video: Almost all of the band's videos feature them performing the song in some context. "Letter From a Thief" consists entirely of this.
• Perishing Alt Rock Voice: Pete on Point #1 before his Vocal Evolution.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: "The Red", a play on the phrase "seeing red".
• Ripped from the Headlines: In a departure from their usual style, "Face To the Floor" is about the recent (at the time of writing) Bernie Madoff scandal.
• Signature Song: Probably "The Red", although "Send The Pain Below" is their highest-charting single.
• Surprisingly Gentle Song: They have a tendency to put one acoustic song on each album (except Vena Sera).
• Surreal Music Video: The clip for "Vitamin R (Leading Us Along)" appears to be this, with the lead singer floating through bizarre landscapes, along with the band performing in a hospital room, and some other random imagery. Once you realize what the song is about, it all makes sense, as the video represents the hallucinations sometimes experienced by people who are addicted to Ritalin.
• Take That: A couple songs from Vena Sera, such as "Brainiac" and "Well Enough Alone" are thought to be shots at ex-bassist Joe, who left (or was kicked out) under acrimonious conditions.
• Walking Shirtless Scene: Joe, in several of the band's videos.
• Word Salad Lyrics: The lyrics are usually pretty oblique, although unlike Maynard James Keenan, Pete doesn't shy away from explaining what certain songs are about.